LANSING -- Failure to reset two alarms allowed convicted murder Michael David Elliot to escape from the Ionia Correctional Facility on Super Bowl Sunday, an investigation by the Michigan Department of Corrections has determined.

The department posted a copy of its formal report online Thursday, in which the investigation determined microwave alarm sensors covering the areas where Elliot made his escape had not been properly reset after being triggered.

Video from the prison on the night of the incident shows Elliot crawling under three fences to make his escape before running into a wooded area behind the prison, the report states. Elliot was wearing white thermal underwear to conceal himself in snow near the fences, according to the report.

The sensors that failed to detect Elliot had not been reset after being tested hours before his escape during a routine check. Prison records showed that the alarms had been triggered but not reset shortly before 3 p.m. the day of the escape, while Elliot was accounted for until at least 4 p.m. He is first seen on video making his escape shortly before 6 p.m.

In an interview with prison officials after his capture, Elliot said he was unaware of the microwave sensors and crawled along the ground to avoid detection on video cameras. Had the sensors been properly reset, the report states, Elliot would have been detected.

"The zones did not activate while Elliot was traversing their coverage areas. This was due to the fact the zones were found to have been shut off by the control center monitor room officer," the report states.

A third sensor that could have detected Elliot was not triggered because it was misaligned and Elliot crawled under the microwave beam, the report states.

The sally port where Elliot crawled under two fences to escape was not staffed on weekends, the report states, and a patrol vehicle that passed near the area at least twice did not see Elliot making his escape.

Elliot told investigators he was able to hear the patrol vehicle coming and stopped moving while the vehicle passed.

After escaping, Elliot stole a hammer and a box cutter from a home, commandeered a passing car from a woman and fled to Indiana, where he was recaptured the following day. He is still fighting extradition back to Indiana.

The status of an independent investigation by Attorney General Bill Schuette's office remains unclear, but messages were left on Thursday asking for an update.